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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, February 11, 2004
This is a strange time of year, what with a small
naked guy flying overhead and shooting poisoned ar-
rows of love and affection; followed by the birthday
observance of Presidents Washington and Lincoln. If
not for them, we wouldn’t have Washington, D.C.
(District of Criminals), and an automobile from the
Ford Motor Co.
The fly guy’s name is Cupid, which rhymes with
stupid, putrid and (almost) limpid. Cupid is supposed
to assist in the art of romance, but depending on
where the arrows lodge, the reaction could be less
than encouraging. His quiver sometimes doesn’t result
in the same for those he targets.
Rapidly moving away from the unclothed armed,
airborne boy, we note that some people, especially
those who get to have the day off with pay, wonder
how it is that George and Abe were born on a holiday.
Actually, they were born on different days, but some
other president ruled that we should observe the birth-
days simultaneously, possibly to reduce the fire dan-
ger from all those candles on the cake.
George is known as the Father of Our Country,
which is an interesting concept, possibly related to
Cupid, which is an area I thought we had vacated. No
mention is made of the Mother of Our Country, but
she must have been quite a woman. Meanwhile, Lin-
coln, according to historical writing, was known as
Honest Abe, apparently because he walked 34 miles
in the dark during a blinding snowstorm to return 1-
cent to a storekeeper who gave him too much change.
For this reason, Lincoln gets his mug on our pre-
sent-day penny. Something like that. We have read
though, that the nickname occurred when Lincoln
staggered into the store with the penny frozen into one
hand and told the storekeeper about the excess
change. To which the man replied, “Honest, Abe?”
This might not be a true rendition.
Washington is also known for his honesty. Most
everyone knows the story about his taking his hatchet
and chopping down a cherry tree near his house.
When asked by his father -- whose name, strangely
enough is not commonly known -- if he cut down the
sapling, Washington is said to have stated, “Father, I
cannot tell a lie. I chopped down the tree.” Or words
to that effect. What his father replied is not well re-
corded, but it might have been cause for “expletive
deleted.”
Somehow, Washington did not become known as
Honest George, Cherry Boy or Hatchet Kid. I still
wonder about the story, because in our experience,
young boys almost invariably chop one knee or the
other, or damage a finger or two, way before they at-
tack any handy trees. It’s in the genes.
So here it is that time of year, when our thoughts
turn to Cupid, Washington and Lincoln. Beware of
arrows, hatchets and loose pennies.
T A I C H I I N S T R U C T I O N
O N G O I N G C L A S S E S
W I T H S I F U V I O L A B R U M B A U G H
5 9 2 - 2 9 8 8
AT THE SELMA COMMUNITY CENTER
MON. AND WED. 6:00 - 7:30 P.M.
Illinois Valley News
An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and
published by Robert R. (Bob) and Jan Rodriguez
Bob Rodriguez, Editor El Jefe
Entered as second class matter June 11, 1937 at Post
Office as Official Newspaper for Josephine County and
Josephine County Three Rivers School District, published
at 321 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523
Periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523
Post Office Box 1370 USPS 258-820
Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330
Volume 66, No. 47
Staff: Cindy Newton, Chris Robertson,
Michelle Binker, Shane Welsh, Becky Loudon
& Kacy Clement
Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association
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SUBSCRIPTION RATES
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POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to
P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR. 97523
(Editor’s Note: Views
and commentary ex-
pressed in letters to the
editor are strictly those
of the letter-writers.
* * *
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ceptable for considera-
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* * *
Where’s
shame?
the
From John Bazen
Cave Junction
Under the so-called
“right to privacy,” we have
since the 1970s legal mur-
der, which most call abor-
tion.
In fact, more than 40
million unborn humans
have been executed with
no trial, no jury, no de-
fense.
Now under this pri-
vacy, we will have same-
sex marriage; plus a new
claim to the Utah courts to
allow bigamy. This came
right after the Texas sod-
omy deal; such laws are
now struck down, under
privacy concerns.
What will be next?
Pedophiles do not op-
erate in public, but in pri-
vacy, so will this be next?
Will those who wish to
rape, steal, rob and kill,
most of which is also done
in private, be on the court
steps for their “rights?”
Why is this happen-
ing?
Liberals want nothing
hard, but all laws to be soft
and fuzzy, and to change a
man’s yes and no to no and
yes. This includes the laws
of God.
Now is this not the
same crowd that gutted the
CIA, with the “Tortacelli
Amendment” and the
“Church Amendment?”
Yup. Both are liberals, yet
the Dems are now scream-
ing at the Republicans over
a lack of intelligence. Go
figure. Remember there is
no figuring out liberal
thinking (you know...soft
and fuzzy, no reality.)
If you do not accept
this train of thought, ask
anyone older than 60 about
the crime rates during the
1950s, or the words used
by children then as com-
pared to today.
Now ask yourself, “Is
this due to our national
outlook of: ‘If it feels
good, do it,’ ‘if not near
the one you love, love the
one you’re near,’ ‘there are
no absolutes in truth, nor
right or wrong,’ ‘there’s a
separation, a wall between
church and state’?”
Can you still hear the
Dems hollering, “America
has lost her reputation
around the world?” The
above are the biggest rea-
sons why.
All of man’s past em-
pires died from internal
pressures of three common
problems: 1. No morals. 2.
High taxes 3. Internal cor-
ruption.
Why does America
refuse to see? Have the
Lib’s dumbed us down?
Where’s the balance?
CRT boosters
From Jerry & Sharon
Work
Kerby
We were new to Illi-
nois Valley two years ago,
having finally found in
Kerby just the property we
had been looking for, the
1907 Masonic Temple that
serves as our fine furniture
studio on the first floor,
with living quarters on the
second.
It had one big draw-
back, one that affects most
residents of Kerby: no reli-
able source of potable wa-
ter. To address this pri-
mary need we learned that
certain inspired citizens,
with the guidance and sup-
port of the Illinois Valley
Community Response
Team (IVCRT), were
forming the Kerby Water
District. Their hard work
has paid off in that the dis-
trict is now an official en-
tity, and governmental
processes are grinding
along to eventually, hope-
fully, bring us clean city
water through pipes.
We can look forward
the day of no more pol-
luted well water that disap-
pears in the summers; no
more reliance upon water
trucks to fill our cisterns;
perhaps even the luxury of
use of a dishwasher.
You have to love the
organization that makes
such progress possible for
a community. And in our
cases, we have volunteered
to serve on the CRT Board
of Directors. It is the least
we can do– to give back to
the non-profit organization
that exists for our benefit.
The list of accomplish-
ments of the CRT during
its existence is long.
Come to the meeting at
Lorna Byrne at 6 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 11, to
learn about the structure of
this organization and how
you can become involved.
Committees are forming,
nominations for the board
of directors are needed,
volunteer opportunities are
being defined. Attend the
annual meeting March 30
at the County Building.
Inquire. Learn. Grow with
us. Participate.
CRT is in a time of
transition as it nears the
end of its original mandate.
Having recently made his-
tory by receiving the con-
tract to manage conces-
sions at Oregon Caves Na-
tional Monument, it has a
new life for the next dec-
ade as a non-profit entity
managing property for the
U.S. government.
Successful manage-
ment of this business will
generate funds for use in
our valley. It is up to us,
you ,me, our neighbors, to
figure out how best to use
these funds.
SILENT SENTINALS - Standing in solidarity for justice,
civil society and peaceful co-existence with kindred
spirits worldwide, the Women in Black and Friends
hold a silent vigil each week at the county bldg. to op-
pose violence in any form. (Photo by Michelle Binker)
December distilled spirits
sales soar, reports OLCC
Oregon liquor stores
sold nearly 10 percent
more distilled spirits dur-
ing December 2003 than
the previous December,
said Oregon Liquor Con-
trol Commission (OLCC).
Sales jumped from
$31.5 million to $34.6 mil-
lion, OLCC said.
The record December
capped off a year of solid
sales growth: an increase
of $17 million in 2003
from 2002, from $261 mil-
lion to $278 million (up
6.51 percent). Last year,
agency stores sold 1.9 mil-
lion cases of liquor, up
from 1.8 million cases in
2002, a 5.28 percent in-
crease.
The sales increase mir-
rors a continuing trend
seen all across the country,
said OLCC liquor buyer
Jim Dodge.
"Customers are buying
the higher-end liquors,
items like top-of-the-line
vodkas, whiskey, and sin-
gle malt scotches," he ex-
plained. "For the past few
years, the spirits industry
has been making changes,
creating products and
packaging that appeals to a
broader market. And the
recent move to cable tele-
vision advertising has also
been positive for the indus-
try."
R o u t i n e t u rn o v e r
opens doors for new liquor
agents, said OLCC. Every
agent operating one of
OLCC's 239 liquor stores
was appointed after a pub-
lic application and selec-
tion process.
There are several
openings each year when
operators resign, retire, or
leave for other reasons,
said Jim Mac Alistaire,
OLCC store operations
director.
OLCC is seeking to fill
five agent vacancies by
May in Waldport, Port-
land, Long Creek, Port
Orford and Unity. Appli-
cations are due Feb. 20.
"We look for the most
qualified person to operate
a store," said Mac Alis-
taire. "We consider appli-
cants over 21 only, and
they should have knowl-
edge of retail operations,
inventory control, cus-
tomer service, cash ac-
countability and more."
For details, telephone
(800) 426-2004, Ext. 5020
Mail to: 9079 S.E.
McLoughlin, Portland, OR
97222, or visit the agency's
W e b
s i t e
a t
www.olcc.state.or.us.
Same-sex marriage
From Roan McClure
Cave Junction
Because this subject
has been put to the fore-
front by Massachusetts,
each state will have to face
the issue.
I have thought for
some time how to express
the concerns that many
people have, regarding the
Massachusetts law provid-
(Continued on page 3)
Citizen of the Year and Business of the Year for 2003
accomplishments are sought by Illinois Valley
Chamber of Commerce, 592-3326. Deadline Sunday, Feb. 15
Nominee____________________
Affiliation___________________
Comments_________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
(use blank sheet of paper, if necessary)
Nominator & phone number__________________________________
***
Awards will be presented during a general chamber meeting on
Saturday, Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. in Wild River Brewing & Pizza Co.
in Cave Junction. Refreshments will be served.